Scientists have revealed alarming findings regarding global warming, stating that greenhouse gas emissions have reached an "all-time high" and are causing an unprecedented rate of climate change.
According to the research, human-induced warming has averaged 1.14°C over the past decade, indicating a significant increase in temperature. The emission of greenhouse gases has also hit a record level, equivalent to a staggering 54 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide each year.
These concerning figures have led leading scientists to launch a project aimed at updating key climate indicators annually, ensuring that people stay informed about critical aspects of global warming.
"Unprecedented Rate"
The study emphasizes the urgent need for action, as human-caused global warming continues to rise at an "unprecedented rate."
Climate experts gathered in Bonn to discuss the progress made in addressing climate change, highlighting the importance of up-to-date and robust scientific evidence on policymakers and civil society groups to base their decisions upon.
While the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) remains the authoritative source for climate information, its major assessments have a turnaround time of several years, resulting in an "information gap" when climate indicators are rapidly changing.
To address this issue, scientists from the University of Leeds have developed the Indicators of Global Climate Change project, an open data platform that will provide updated information on key climate indicators every year.
Professor Piers Forster, the project's coordinator, emphasizes the critical nature of the current decade for climate change, as decisions made during this time will significantly impact future temperature rise and the severity of associated impacts.
Long-term warming rates are currently at a high due to unprecedented levels of greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, access to timely and up-to-date information is crucial in informing policy changes and approaches.
The updated indicators reveal that human-induced warming, largely caused by the burning of fossil fuels, has risen to an average of 1.14°C above pre-industrial levels over the most recent decade.
Furthermore, greenhouse gas emissions have reached an all-time high, with approximately 54 billion metric tonnes of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere each year between 2012 and 2021.
Although there has been progress in reducing coal consumption, this has contributed to global warming by reducing particulate pollution, which has a cooling effect.
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Decline in Carbon Budget
The analysis also highlights the decline in the remaining carbon budget, which estimates how much carbon dioxide can be released while maintaining a 50% chance of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C.
The remaining carbon budget, estimated to be around 500 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide in 2020, has now been reduced by half to approximately 250 gigatonnes due to continued emissions and updated estimates of human-induced warming.
This emphasizes the urgent need for global efforts to reduce emissions to prevent the 1.5°C goal from becoming unattainable.
The Indicators of Global Climate Change project aims to provide crucial data to help policymakers and key players address the climate crisis effectively. By offering up-to-date information on greenhouse gas emissions, human-induced global warming, and the remaining carbon budget, the project aims to facilitate evidence-based decision-making.
The findings of the study were published in the journal Earth System Science Data.
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